


hope winter goes easy on you

by summerstorm



Category: Once Upon a Time (2011)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-12-31
Updated: 2011-12-31
Packaged: 2017-10-28 13:13:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/308223
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/summerstorm/pseuds/summerstorm
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Snow visits Ella a month after Thomas disappears.</p>
            </blockquote>





	hope winter goes easy on you

**Author's Note:**

> Written for annemari in an impromptu end-of-year/help-me-meet-my-yearly-word-quotas drabble meme.

"He can't just be gone," Ella said. "He can't just have vanished." She was standing by the balcony, looking out at the night sky, though Snow wasn't certain Ella was looking for anything, or seeing much of anything. The curtains were only half drawn even if the doors to the balcony were pushed open, and Ella's feet were still firmly inside the room.

Snow understood Ella's attempt to distract herself from everything currently at her back: Thomas's life, his castle, the room they'd shared. But she could tell Ella was fretting; the sharp set of her shoulders was a tell, as was the way Ella had acknowledged Snow's footsteps before Snow had a chance to knock on her open door.

Snow walked across the room calmly, feeling maybe a little tired. It had been a long journey, the third in as many weeks. It had been a month since they'd imprisoned Rumpelstiltskin, a month since the last time Snow had been here. She'd stayed a few days then; she hadn't been able to postpone her duties for much longer, no matter how much she would have liked to stay with Ella, or take Ella with her. Ella had duties, too. Everything Thomas had done would fall on her, not to mention she'd have to put his subjects at ease as best she could.

It wasn't a thankless job, by any means, but Snow knew it was harder for Ella than it was for Snow, or even for James; Snow had grown up a princess, and carried her responsibility toward the realm with ease and gratefulness of her own. James had had a hard time adapting to being a prince, from what Snow had gathered over the years, but in the end he'd made a choice to take on that role, and later, to choose Snow over going back home.

But Ella had fallen into royalty almost by accident, and for love; many had distrusted her, she'd had to prove herself to them, and even now, she had no place but the castle to call home. No one but Thomas to call home. Now that Thomas was gone, it was the kingdom first and her grief, if she allowed herself to feel any, later. Snow hated to think of how she would feel if she'd got out of being a servant only to find herself shouldering the lives of thousands upon thousands of people she didn't know.

Reigning was a privilege, to be sure, but there were no days off, no leaves.

Snow draped an arm around Ella's shoulders and breathed easier when Ella slumped against her, her warm weight a reminder that wherever Thomas was, Ella was still here, still present, still alive. Snow rubbed the bare skin under Ella's shoulder with the back of her fingers, soft and reassuring, until Ella sighed.

"There's another search party out," Snow said. James was supposed to join them on their way here; their slightly different duties meant she'd arrived in town first. Nonetheless, Snow herself had borrowed a horse and ridden through the woods around the castle before it got dark, on the off chance she might have good news for Ella when she finally saw her again. Snow had come up empty-handed, but James should be here soon; the thought of that was comforting.

Ella sniffed; her cheeks were flushed, but she wasn't crying. Snow couldn't quite tell if that was good or bad, if Ella was stable or if she'd made a habit, over the past month, of holding back tears, letting frustration grow in her stomach instead. "That doesn't mean anything," Ella said, a bitter edge to her voice.

Snow didn't deny it, or tell Ella there was no way she could know; there wasn't, but Snow knew Ella wasn't looking for disagreement. Ella had hope, Snow was quite sure; it was painfully obvious that Ella was still waiting for a miracle, for Thomas to appear out of thin air at the door and save her from becoming a widowed princess, someone with no connection to the throne but the title she'd been given upon marrying the heir—an heir who was now gone.

Straightening, Ella blinked, twice, and said in her best hostess voice, "Some of the servants stayed up to make a late supper for James and our knights." In normal circumstances, Snow would have taught her to say that there would be a late supper, or that food was waiting, instead of mentioning the servants' work in procuring it outside of their schedule.

'In normal circumstances' was a ridiculous concept. There had been no normal circumstances for Snow since her mother had passed away. She suspected it was much the same for Ella.

"You know the King hates when you say that," Snow said.

"Well," Ella said with a half smile, "to be honest, I think some of them just want to see James. They seem quite fond of your Prince Charming."

Snow returned the smile. "He is fond of them," she said, "and of you as well."

"I really appreciate you coming to see me. I know you—both of you have more important matters to attend elsewhere."

Shaking her head, Snow shushed her, and reached for her hand. "That's nonsense, Ella. I can't think of anything that matters more to us than your welfare."

Ella's eyes did well up then; she blinked back the tears, and squeezed Snow's fingers tighter, leading her out of the room. "Let's wait somewhere less gloomy," she said, and quickly corrected herself, "not that my quarters are gloomy, of course, it's just that I can't be there without thinking—"

"How about the library?" Snow suggested. "You mentioned a book of poetry you'd found in your last letter." She didn't mention that letter had come before Thomas disappeared; it wasn't relevant, for one, and Ella knew that better than anyone. "I'd love to see it."

Ella pressed her lips together, looking at Snow with grateful eyes, and led the way.


End file.
